More than a century ago, the 1906 Chicago White Sox won a championship with a team batting average of .230. Their leading hitter was second baseman Frank Isbell at .279, and starting third baseman Lee Tannehill hit just .183. The “Hitless Wonders” won that year with great pitching — a club ERA of 2.13 — and being daring on the basepaths, stealing 216 bases.
Unfortunately, this isn’t 1906.
True, Washington’s pitching has exceeded everyone’s expectations in the absence of Stephen Strasburg. All five starting pitchers are averaging more than five innings per start, and the bullpen has been one of the game’s best. The offense, other than Friday’s 17-run outburst, has been all but invisible.
The injury to Ryan Zimmerman, who’s played in just eight games this season, has had a devastating impact on the rest of the lineup. He’s their best hitter, and while the Nats have gotten solid defensive play at third from fill-ins Alex Cora and Jerry Hairston, there’s no compensating for Zimmerman’s bat. The Nationals have the lowest team batting average in baseball. That they’ve been able to stay this close to .500 past the season’s quarter-pole is testament to manager Jim Riggleman and pitching coach Steve McCatty.
So, why aren’t they hitting? It’s easy for some fans to blame the hitting coach, Rick Eckstein, but few coaches in the game work as hard as he does. Extra batting practice? Sure, they’re doing that. Remedial time in the video room? Absolutely.
Frequently, callers on the postgame radio show will criticize specific hitters for swinging at the first pitch, especially when the result kills a rally or ends an inning with someone in scoring position. I used to feel the same way, based largely on Ted Williams’ philosophy of virtually always taking the first pitch. But Ted’s not playing anymore, and hitting coaches these days frequently preach that if the first pitch is the one you’re looking for, let it fly — unless, perhaps, the pitcher has displayed some control issues
Results are everything. The hitter’s intent is to make contact, so a swing-and-a-miss is a negative result. Men on first and third and one out? The desired result — a fly ball that will score the run — sometimes is just a routine double play grounder. Another negative. It’s like in football: every play is drawn up to gain yardage, but they don’t work every time. Same with deciding whether or not to swing the bat in the blink of an eye. It’s not as easy as it might look.
Every scout I’ve spoken with this year believes the Nationals will hit, based on their individual track records. We’re past the point of the old “it’s still early in the season” argument. It’s not early anymore. The return of Zimmerman to the lineup is still weeks away and there’s no Joe Hardy waiting in the wings at the moment, Bryce Harper notwithstanding.
The Nationals have to hope that their own big bang theory comes to fruition more sooner than later. Pitching — and an improved defense — can only pick up so much of the slack.
Examiner columnist Phil Wood is a baseball historian and contributor to MASN’s Nats Xtra. Contact him at [email protected].
